hate – The Lowedown

John 15

¹⁸“When the world hates you, remember it hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹The world would love you if you belonged to it, but you don’t. I chose you to come out of the world, and so it hates you. ²⁰Do you remember what I told you? ‘A servant is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you! ²¹The people of the world will hate you because you belong to me, for they don’t know God who sent me. ²²They would not be guilty if I had not come and spoken to them. But now they have no excuse for their sin. ²³Anyone who hates me hates my Father, too. ²⁴If I hadn’t done such miraculous signs among them that no one else could do, they would not be counted guilty. But as it is, they saw all that I did and yet hated both of us—me and my Father. ²⁵This has fulfilled what the Scriptures said: ‘They hated me without cause.’ ²⁶“But I will send you the Counselor—the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will tell you all about me. ²⁷And you must also tell others about me because you have been with me from the beginning.

(John 15:18-27, NLT)

The Daily DAVEotional

Have you noticed that there is a lot of hate in our culture today. A LOT.

What I find interesting is that our culture seems to have redefined what the word hate even means. If you disagree with someone, you are quickly labeled a “hater.”

This is very problematic for Christians because we believe that Jesus has given us moral guidelines to live by and to promote as good for our society at large.

But many of the moral guidelines Christians hold to are not accepted by our culture. So what is the response? Christians are labeled as haters.

There are lots of names that can be found in the hate bucket. Racist, Sexist, Misogynist. Homophobic. Transphobic. Judgmental. Hypocritical.

There is no doubt that there are those who identify as Christians who are racist, or sexist or judgmental, or any number of other labels. ALL have sinned. ALL do sin. We should be honest about that and appeal to Jesus to not only forgive but transform.

Still, no matter what you say or do, some are going to hate you. This should not surprise us as Jesus Himself warned that this would be the case.

And yet, I find that many Christians cannot stomach the fact that the world hates them. So what is the response? For many, the response is accommodation. I see quite a number of Christians, churches and denominations who are changing their theology, their moral stances and in some cases, their entire worldview – all so that they won’t be hated by others.

And while the culture has redefined what hate is, I think many believers have redefined what love is. In a desperate attempt to not be seen as any of the “hate” words listed above, I see long-standing, biblical beliefs and moral principles being accommodated and compromised, in the name of “love”. The thinking for many is that if others hate you, then you must not be “loving.”

Nothing could be further from the truth. Loving people has nothing to do with getting them to like you. This passage is a proof text for that. Jesus was and is the most loving person who ever lived and yet He was hated so much that He was crucified by His haters. His love for them was not enough to get them to “like” Him.

In this passage, Jesus implores His followers to recognize this same principle. Some people are so hard-hearted toward God that anyone who represents Him or reflects His moral guidance is a target for personal wrath and ire. We cannot avoid this. We simply must endure it.

Fortunately, Jesus sends us the Counselor, the Spirit of TRUTH, who gives us the courage to tell others about Jesus and empowers us with the strength to endure the hatred that may be directed toward us.

Reflection

As Christians, we are commanded to love others. What do you think that looks like? How do you love people who hate you and what you stand for?

When Jesus says that the world will hate His followers, what do you think that means?

How do you think Christians should respond to hate they experience from the world?

Do you think it’s possible for Christians to be liked by the world? Why or why not?

Jesus says that we are to tell others about Him. What exactly about Jesus do you think we are to communicate? What do you think are the best ways to communicate about Jesus to others?

Photo by Andre Hunter on Unsplash

Matthew 5

⁴³“You have heard that the law of Moses says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. ⁴⁴But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! ⁴⁵In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and on the unjust, too. ⁴⁶If you love only those who love you, what good is that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. ⁴⁷If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. ⁴⁸But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48, NLT)

The Daily DAVEotional

There goes Jesus again raising the bar on ethical behavior for everyone and creating impossible standards to live by!

In Matthew 5, commonly referred to as the “Sermon on the Mount”, Jesus gives a series of statements related to his views on the Old Testament Law. The Law, which included over 600 commandments was already impossible to adhere to perfectly (though the Pharisees thought they could), and yet Jesus, with a series of “you’ve heard it said….but I say” statements elevates the demands of the law to an even higher standard.

Jesus’ comments conclude with this section on love. Jesus states that the Old Testament Law commanded you to love your neighbor and hate your enemy. This makes perfect sense to most people. Why would we love those who are our enemies? People who oppose us, especially those who seek to do harm are not going to get my love, they’re going to experience my wrath. “You mess with the bull, you’re gonna get the horns!”

This of course is how our culture views the topic of love. We love those who are friendly to us. We love those who are generous towards us. We love those who serve us and help us to achieve our personal desires. We LOVE those who agree with us and affirm our positions on everything from religion to politics to pop culture.

Oh wait! That person I loved just said something I disagree with. I no longer love that person. I loathe that person. I hate that person. I REALLY HATE that person. I hate that person so much I’m going to get other people to hate that person.

The difference between our love and Jesus’ love is conditions. We put conditions on our love (I’ll love you if….or….I’ll love you as long as you….).

Jesus doesn’t put conditions on his love. He loves you even if you are not friendly to him. He loves you even if you disagree with him or even if you HATE him. He loves you unconditionally.

It’s not surprising then that Jesus calls his followers to love this same way. He tells us to love our enemies because he demonstrates love even to those who don’t acknowledge or follow him. He demonstrates love even to those who say that they HATE Him!

What is the proof God shows love to His enemies? The proof is that He gives sunlight and brings rain to everyone, not just those who are in His fan club.

Now if you’re saying to yourself, “Wait a minute. That’s impossible! Nobody could live up to that standard.”

Congratulations. You understand the point. God’s standard is perfection. It’s HIS level of righteousness we must possess and display.

When we come to the realization that we have to be as perfect as He is, then we can stop pretending that we are “good” and we can start trusting Jesus to provide a way for us to be forgiven and cleansed from our sin.

Oh yeah, and even though Jesus’ standard for love is not achievable, He still expects us to love our enemies. Think about that the next time you prepare to enter into the social media arena!

Reflection

What kinds of things tend to anger you about other people?

What are some things you’ve experienced from others that make it more difficult to love them?

Think of a person in your life that is hard to love for whatever reason. What are some tangible things you could do today to demonstrate love toward them.

What are some practical steps you could implement to begin developing love towards those to whom you’ve previously been opposed?

Photo by Jude Beck on Unsplash